Philadelphia Eagles: Eric Wilson has some big shoes to fill
Who is the leader of the Philadelphia Eagles‘ defense?
In the past, that felt fairly obvious. From his signing in 2014 through the 2019 season, the answer had to be Malcolm Jenkins, the team’s ironman safety who led pre-game huddles, directed audibles, and served as the team’s defensive mouthpiece off the field. Before him, the honor probably belonged to DeMeco Ryans, the veteran middle linebacker Chip Kelly signed away from the Houston Texans to anchor the middle of his defense.
Sure, both players were explicitly brought in for their on-field abilities but provided exceptional additional value with their leadership, serving as almost coaches-on-the-field for their new team.
Fun fact: DeMeco Ryans is now the San Francisco 49ers’ defensive coordinator, so he really did will that coach-on-the-field label into existence.
While some may point to the Eagles’ most tenured player, Fletcher Cox, as the logical fit to fill a leadership role moving forward, that rally hasn’t been his bag thus far in his NFL career. Despite his massive contract, Cox wasn’t named a captain until 2018 and has been known to lead more with his play than his words.
No, much like in the past, if the Philadelphia Eagles are going to put things together and field a formidable defensive unit under first-year defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon, they need his handpicked “Mike” linebacker, Eric Wilson, to come in and fill the team’s currently-vacant on-field leadership shoes.
Eric Wilson is the Philadelphia Eagles’ most important free agent signing.
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In Minnesota, Eric Wilson played weakside linebacker in Mike Zimmer‘s defense.
Despite entering the league as an undrafted free agent out of Cincinnati – a weirdly prolific hotbed for future Eagles – Wilson joined Zimmer’s starting lineup midway through his second season and went on to start 25 of his final 40 games with the team.
Had Minnesota not underperformed last season to a near-Eagles-esque degree, maybe he’d still be a member of the Vikings, but instead, the team opted to allow key free agents like Wilson and his current Eagles teammate Anthony Harris to walk in free agency in favor of signing longtime Cardinal Patrick Peterson to a one-year deal worth $10 million.
But hey, it’s cool, Minnesota’s loss is Philly’s gain, and after watching Nathan Gerry struggle to take on a bigger role sans his 2019 partner in crime Nigel Bradham, there’s nowhere to go but up for Wilson.
On paper, signing Wilson is an ideal choice for a first-time defensive coordinator. He initially worked with Gannon during their shared tenure in Minnesota, where the latter was working as an assistant defensive backs coach, and clearly left enough of an impression to earn the nod over Colts players like Anthony Walker, who played under Gannon’s former boss Matt Eberflus in Indianapolis last season. But moving him from the weakside to the inside full time? That’s a bit of a surprise.
In Wilson, Gannon has a player who presumably knows his terminology and can serve as a resource for his teammates. If that was all he brought to the table, it’d be a value at twice his 2021 cap hit, but in the NFL, middle linebackers don’t just walk in, play their role, and move on to the next snap.
No, assuming Wilson does win the middle linebacker spot over challengers like Alex Singleton, T.J. Edwards, and Shawn Bradley, he’ll also be tasked with wearing the team’s defensive headset while serving as Gannon’s ears on the field. Wilson will need to know where every player lines up on every play, how to easily convey audibles relayed to him by Gannon, and have the wherewithal to call his own audibles if the opposing offenses opt to shake things up a few seconds before the snap.
Gerry was incredibly ill-equipped to fill that role in 2020 and looked completely lost on the field as a result. Singleton played noticeably better when he took over for Gerry in Week 8, but he’s far better suited to play on the outside than in the middle of the field, where his athletic abilities can match up on opposing tight ends.
Even if Edwards lines up in the middle during base package sets, where his thumping abilities in zone coverage can provide incredible short-yardage value versus the run, Wilson’s going to be the one calling the plays, keeping things copacetic, and ultimately getting his teammates in the best position to succeed.
Needless to say, the pressure is on for Wilson to prove his worth in this a make-it or break-it contract year.
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Will it work? Will the Philadelphia Eagles shred Eric Wilson’s meager contract midway through the season and lock him into a long-term contract to serve as their middle linebacker of the future, or will the experiment of kicking an outside linebacker to the “Mike” fail for the second straight season and leave Howie Roseman with egg on his face yet again? Hopefully, the former.